feat(automation): opt-in single-hop lookup expansion for record-change flow templates (#3475)

A record-change flow can declare `expand: ['<lookup>', …]` on its start-node
config so node templates resolve `{record.<lookup>.<field>}` (e.g.
`{record.account.name}` — the #3426 lookup gap).

The engine re-reads the declared relations AFTER identity resolution, as the
run's OWN principal (`resolveRunDataContext` honors `runAs`), and grafts the
expanded objects onto the run record. So a `runAs:'user'` run reads the
referenced object as the triggering USER — RLS/FLS enforced — not system-
elevated, which is exactly what made expansion unsafe in the trigger's re-read
(no resolved grants there). New `AutomationEngine.setRecordExpander`, bridged by
the plugin to the same data engine the CRUD nodes use.

Only declared keys are grafted, so bare lookup ids, `multiple` lookup arrays
(#1872), and trigger-hydrated formula fields are untouched. Opt-in ⇒ zero cost
otherwise; best-effort ⇒ a re-read failure leaves the record unexpanded and
never breaks the flow. The `flow-template-lookup-traversal` lint warning
(#3472) is suppressed once a relation is declared in `config.expand`.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Author: os-zhuang

.changeset/flow-lookup-expand.md

@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+---
+"@objectstack/service-automation": minor
+"@objectstack/lint": patch
+---
+
+feat(automation): opt-in single-hop lookup expansion for record-change flow templates (#3475)
+
+A record-change flow can now declare `expand: ['<lookup_field>', …]` on its start
+node config so node templates resolve `{record.<lookup>.<field>}` (e.g.
+`{record.account.name}` in a notify title, closing the #3426 gap for lookups).
+
+The engine re-reads the declared relations AFTER identity resolution, as the
+run's OWN principal — `resolveRunDataContext` honors `runAs`, so a `runAs:'user'`
+run reads the referenced object as the **triggering user** (its RLS/FLS enforced)
+rather than system-elevated. This is what made expansion unsafe to do in the
+trigger's re-read (which has no resolved grants) and is why it lives in the
+engine (new `AutomationEngine.setRecordExpander`, bridged by the plugin to the
+same data engine the CRUD nodes use).
+
+Only the declared relation keys are grafted onto the run record, so bare lookup
+ids and `multiple` lookup arrays (#1872) on other relations — and the formula
+fields the trigger already hydrated — are untouched. Opt-in ⇒ zero cost when
+unused; best-effort ⇒ a re-read failure leaves the record unexpanded and never
+breaks the flow.
+
+The `os validate` lint rule `flow-template-lookup-traversal` (#3426/#3472) is now
+suppressed for a relation once the flow declares it in `config.expand`.

packages/lint/src/validate-flow-template-paths.test.ts

@@ -186,6 +186,49 @@ describe('validateFlowTemplatePaths', () => {
     expect(findings[0].rule).toBe(FLOW_TEMPLATE_UNKNOWN_FIELD);
   });
 
+  it('does NOT flag a lookup traversal when the start config declares expand (#3475)', () => {
+    const findings = validateFlowTemplatePaths({
+      objects: [LEAD_OBJECT],
+      flows: [
+        {
+          name: 'expand_ok',
+          type: 'record_change',
+          nodes: [
+            {
+              id: 'start',
+              type: 'start',
+              config: { objectName: 'crm_lead', triggerType: 'record-created', expand: ['crm_account'] },
+            },
+            { id: 'n1', type: 'notify', notify: { title: 'From {record.crm_account.name}', body: 'x' } },
+          ],
+        },
+      ],
+    });
+    expect(findings).toHaveLength(0);
+  });
+
+  it('still flags a lookup traversal NOT covered by the declared expand (#3475)', () => {
+    const findings = validateFlowTemplatePaths({
+      objects: [LEAD_OBJECT],
+      flows: [
+        {
+          name: 'expand_partial',
+          type: 'record_change',
+          nodes: [
+            {
+              id: 'start',
+              type: 'start',
+              config: { objectName: 'crm_lead', triggerType: 'record-created', expand: ['target_channels'] },
+            },
+            { id: 'n1', type: 'notify', notify: { title: 'From {record.crm_account.name}', body: 'x' } },
+          ],
+        },
+      ],
+    });
+    expect(findings).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(findings[0].rule).toBe(FLOW_TEMPLATE_LOOKUP_TRAVERSAL);
+  });
+
   it('returns empty when there are no flows', () => {
     expect(validateFlowTemplatePaths({ objects: [LEAD_OBJECT] })).toHaveLength(0);
   });

packages/lint/src/validate-flow-template-paths.ts

@@ -189,6 +189,22 @@ function boundObjectOf(flow: AnyRec): string | undefined {
   return fromConfig ?? fromTyped;
 }
 
+/**
+ * The lookup relations a record-change flow opted IN to expand, from the start
+ * node's `config.expand` (#3475). A `{record.<rel>.<field>}` hop through one of
+ * these IS resolved at run time — the engine re-reads it as the run's identity —
+ * so the traversal warning is suppressed for those relations. Accepts a `string`
+ * or `string[]`; anything else yields the empty set.
+ */
+function declaredExpandOf(flow: AnyRec): Set<string> {
+  const nodes = Array.isArray(flow.nodes) ? (flow.nodes as AnyRec[]) : [];
+  const start = nodes.find((n) => n?.type === 'start');
+  const raw = ((start?.config ?? {}) as AnyRec).expand;
+  if (typeof raw === 'string') return new Set(raw ? [raw] : []);
+  if (Array.isArray(raw)) return new Set(raw.filter((r): r is string => typeof r === 'string' && r.length > 0));
+  return new Set();
+}
+
 /**
  * Validate `{record.<path>}` template references across every record-change
  * flow. Pure and dependency-free; safe on pre- or post-parse stacks.
@@ -218,6 +234,7 @@ export function validateFlowTemplatePaths(stack: AnyRec): FlowTemplatePathFindin
     if (!obj) return;
 
     const fieldTypes = fieldTypesOf(obj);
+    const expandSet = declaredExpandOf(flow);
 
     nodes.forEach((node, nodeIndex) => {
       if (typeof node !== 'object' || !node) return;
@@ -264,7 +281,7 @@ export function validateFlowTemplatePaths(stack: AnyRec): FlowTemplatePathFindin
 
           if (nextIsIdentifier) {
             const headType = fieldTypes.get(head) ?? '';
-            if (RELATION_TYPES.has(headType)) {
+            if (RELATION_TYPES.has(headType) && !expandSet.has(head)) {
               const key = rest.join('.');
               if (seenTraversal.has(key)) continue;
               seenTraversal.add(key);
@@ -278,9 +295,9 @@ export function validateFlowTemplatePaths(stack: AnyRec): FlowTemplatePathFindin
                   `'${head}' — the flow record carries '${head}' as a scalar id, not an expanded object, so ` +
                   `this resolves to an empty string at runtime (silently).`,
                 hint:
-                  `Single-hop lookup traversal in templates is not resolved yet (tracked on #3426). ` +
-                  `Reference the foreign-key id directly ('{record.${head}}'), or add a formula field on ` +
-                  `'${objectName}' that projects the related value and reference that instead.`,
+                  `Opt in to resolve it: add '${head}' to the start node's config.expand (#3475) and the ` +
+                  `engine re-reads it as the run's identity. Otherwise reference the foreign-key id directly ` +
+                  `('{record.${head}}'), or project the value via a formula field on '${objectName}'.`,
               });
             }
             // STRUCTURED_TYPES + any other scalar `.sub` access is left alone:

packages/services/service-automation/src/engine.ts

@@ -289,6 +289,24 @@ export type FlowUserGrantsResolver = (
   tenantId: string | undefined,
 ) => Promise<FlowUserGrants | undefined> | FlowUserGrants | undefined;
 
+/**
+ * Re-reads the specified single-hop lookup relations of a record-change flow's
+ * triggering record so `{record.<lookup>.<field>}` templates can traverse them
+ * (#3475). Injected by the host — the automation plugin bridges it to a
+ * data-engine `findOne(..., { expand, context })` scoped by the run's identity
+ * ({@link resolveRunDataContext}), so the referenced object's RLS/FLS are
+ * enforced as the RUN (never system-elevated for a `runAs:'user'` run). Returns
+ * the re-read record (with the requested relations expanded to objects) or
+ * `undefined`; only the declared relation keys are grafted onto the run record.
+ * When unwired, lookup traversal stays unresolved (the pre-#3475 behavior).
+ */
+export type FlowRecordExpander = (
+  objectName: string,
+  id: unknown,
+  expandFields: readonly string[],
+  runContext: AutomationContext,
+) => Promise<Record<string, unknown> | undefined> | Record<string, unknown> | undefined;
+
 /**
  * A designer-facing view of one connector action — identity + its JSON-Schema
  * input/output. The runtime handler is intentionally omitted; this is metadata.
@@ -667,6 +685,9 @@ export class AutomationEngine implements IAutomationService {
     /** Bridge to the host authz resolver so a `runAs:'user'` run enforces the
      *  triggering user's real grants (#3356), if wired. See {@link FlowUserGrantsResolver}. */
     private userGrantsResolver: FlowUserGrantsResolver | null = null;
+    /** Bridge to a host data read that expands declared lookup relations on the
+     *  run record (#3475), if wired. See {@link FlowRecordExpander}. */
+    private recordExpander: FlowRecordExpander | null = null;
     private executionLogs: ExecutionLogEntry[] = [];
     private readonly maxLogSize: number;
     private logger: Logger;
@@ -1136,6 +1157,16 @@ export class AutomationEngine implements IAutomationService {
         this.userGrantsResolver = resolver;
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Wire the record lookup-expander (#3475). The automation plugin bridges it
+     * to a `findOne(..., { expand, context })` on the same data engine the CRUD
+     * nodes use, scoped by the run's identity. Passing `null` detaches it (lookup
+     * traversal in templates then stays unresolved).
+     */
+    setRecordExpander(expander: FlowRecordExpander | null): void {
+        this.recordExpander = expander;
+    }
+
     /**
      * Resolve a named function for a `script` node. Returns `undefined` when no
      * resolver is wired or the name is unregistered — the node then fails the
@@ -1570,9 +1601,69 @@ export class AutomationEngine implements IAutomationService {
                 `(ADR-0049, #1888).`,
             );
         }
+
+        // #3475 — opt-in single-hop lookup expansion, AFTER identity resolution so
+        // the re-read runs as this run's own principal (see helper).
+        await this.expandDeclaredLookups(flow, runContext);
         return runContext;
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Enrich `runContext.record` with opt-in single-hop lookup expansions the
+     * start node declares as `config.expand: string[]` (#3475). Re-reads just
+     * those relations through the injected {@link setRecordExpander} — which the
+     * host wires to a data-engine read scoped by {@link resolveRunDataContext},
+     * so the referenced object's RLS/FLS are enforced as the RUN's identity (the
+     * triggering user for `runAs:'user'`, elevated for `runAs:'system'`). Grafts
+     * ONLY the declared relation keys, and only when the re-read actually returned
+     * an object/array, so bare lookup ids and #1872 multi-lookup arrays on other
+     * relations — and the formula fields the trigger already hydrated — stay
+     * untouched. Mutates `record` in place (the same object the run's variable map
+     * already references). Best-effort: any failure leaves `record` unexpanded
+     * (the template then renders the scalar id) — expansion must never break the
+     * flow it feeds.
+     */
+    private async expandDeclaredLookups(flow: FlowParsed, runContext: AutomationContext): Promise<void> {
+        if (!this.recordExpander) return;
+        const record = runContext.record as Record<string, unknown> | undefined;
+        const id = record?.id;
+        const object = runContext.object;
+        if (!record || id == null || id === '' || !object) return;
+
+        const startNode = flow.nodes.find((n) => n.type === 'start');
+        const raw = (startNode?.config as { expand?: unknown } | undefined)?.expand;
+        const expandFields =
+            typeof raw === 'string'
+                ? raw
+                    ? [raw]
+                    : []
+                : Array.isArray(raw)
+                    ? raw.filter((f): f is string => typeof f === 'string' && f.length > 0)
+                    : [];
+        if (expandFields.length === 0) return;
+
+        try {
+            const full = await this.recordExpander(object, id, expandFields, runContext);
+            if (full && typeof full === 'object') {
+                for (const field of expandFields) {
+                    const expanded = (full as Record<string, unknown>)[field];
+                    // Graft only a genuinely expanded relation (object/array); a
+                    // scalar means the field is not a resolvable lookup — leave the
+                    // raw id in place rather than overwrite it.
+                    if (expanded !== null && typeof expanded === 'object') {
+                        record[field] = expanded;
+                    }
+                }
+            }
+        } catch (err) {
+            this.logger.warn(
+                `[expand] flow '${flow.name}' could not expand lookups [${expandFields.join(', ')}] on ` +
+                `'${object}#${String(id)}': ${(err as Error)?.message ?? String(err)}. Templates referencing ` +
+                `these relations resolve to the scalar id.`,
+            );
+        }
+    }
+
     async execute(flowName: string, context?: AutomationContext): Promise<AutomationResult> {
         const startTime = Date.now();
         const flow = this.flows.get(flowName);

packages/services/service-automation/src/plugin.ts

@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ import type {
 import { isConnectorUpstreamUnavailable } from '@objectstack/spec/integration';
 import { AutomationEngine } from './engine.js';
 import { installBuiltinNodes, rearmSuspendedWaitTimers } from './builtin/index.js';
+import { resolveRunDataContext } from './runtime-identity.js';
 import { SysAutomationRun } from './sys-automation-run.object.js';
 import {
     ObjectStoreSuspendedRunStore,
@@ -520,6 +521,34 @@ export class AutomationServicePlugin implements Plugin {
                     };
                 });
                 ctx.logger.debug('[Automation] runAs:user grant resolver bridged to @objectstack/core resolveUserAuthzGrants (#3356)');
+
+                // #3475 — bridge the lookup expander for record-change flow
+                // templates. Re-reads the relations a flow declares in its start
+                // node's `config.expand` via the run's own identity
+                // (`resolveRunDataContext` honors runAs), so `{record.<lookup>.<field>}`
+                // resolves WITHOUT bypassing the triggering user's RLS/FLS on the
+                // referenced object. Same engine the CRUD nodes and grant resolver
+                // use; a no-op when it exposes no `findOne`.
+                const expandQl = engineQl as {
+                    findOne?: (
+                        obj: string,
+                        q: Record<string, unknown>,
+                    ) => Promise<Record<string, unknown> | null | undefined>;
+                };
+                if (typeof expandQl.findOne === 'function') {
+                    this.engine.setRecordExpander(async (objectName, id, expandFields, runContext) => {
+                        const dataCtx = resolveRunDataContext(runContext);
+                        const expand: Record<string, unknown> = {};
+                        for (const f of expandFields) expand[f] = {};
+                        const query: Record<string, unknown> = { where: { id }, expand };
+                        // Omit `context` for the identity-less case (matches the CRUD
+                        // nodes), so the data engine applies its no-identity default.
+                        if (dataCtx) query.context = dataCtx;
+                        const full = await expandQl.findOne!(objectName, query);
+                        return full && typeof full === 'object' ? (full as Record<string, unknown>) : undefined;
+                    });
+                    ctx.logger.debug('[Automation] record-change lookup expander bridged (#3475)');
+                }
             } else {
                 ctx.logger.debug('[Automation] objectql not present — runAs:user runs keep the trigger-supplied identity');
             }